Phill Hartsfield
Encyclopedia
Phill Hartsfield was a Southern California
sword
and knifemaker based in Garden Grove, California
who is noted for popularizing the chisel ground blade in the western world. Hartsfield's designs have influenced other knifemakers, primarily Ernest Emerson
.
technician. After serving 4 years, he was discharged and worked as a television repairman. After six months of working for a repairshop, Hartsfield opened his own repairshop at the age of 22 while making knives part-time. In 1977, he closed his TV repair business and became a full-time knifemaker.
-influenced, each one was hand ground from A2 tool steel
, and differentially edge hardened
to RC 60-61 on the Rockwell scale
with the remainder of the blade hardened to 58-59 on the scale to allow for flex during the cut. This strength protected the life of a Special Forces
advisor in El Salvador
when a Hartsfield knife stopped a 7.62x51mm NATO rifle bullet fired by a guerrilla. Hartdfield's blades were zero-ground, meaning there is no secondary bevel edge on the knife which allows the knife to cut without parasitic drag
.
The majority of Hartsfield's blades are designed as tools with little to no ornamentation. However, Hartsfield makes museum
quality pieces, some of which are on display at the Canadian Army Museum at Halifax Citadel
as examples of Samurai
Swords.
Hartsfield built a unique hand-driven grinder, the "Lil Cranky," after his electric grinder had a mishap. While grinding a blade, a piece of metal embedded in the wheel and caused the wheel to explode. After a four-hour surgery and months in recovery, Hartsfield designed his machine and sold them from his shop to other knifemakers.
Hartsfield's knives are used by the US Navy Seals
and the USMC MARSOC teams.
Hartsfield died on May 20, 2010 at his home in Newport Beach, California
after a lengthy battle with brain cancer.
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
and knifemaker based in Garden Grove, California
Garden Grove, California
Garden Grove is a city located in northern Orange County, California. The population was 170,883 at the 2010 census. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city running east-west. The city is known outside the Southern California area for being the home of Robert H...
who is noted for popularizing the chisel ground blade in the western world. Hartsfield's designs have influenced other knifemakers, primarily Ernest Emerson
Ernest Emerson
Ernest R. Emerson is an American custom knifemaker, martial artist, and edged-weapons expert. Originally an engineer and machinist in the aerospace industry, Emerson became a knifemaker known for making decorative knives but later became better known for his combat knives, eventually founding a...
.
Early life
Hartsfield joined the US Navy at 17 and served as a SONARSonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
technician. After serving 4 years, he was discharged and worked as a television repairman. After six months of working for a repairshop, Hartsfield opened his own repairshop at the age of 22 while making knives part-time. In 1977, he closed his TV repair business and became a full-time knifemaker.
Knife making
Hartsfield's blades are JapaneseKatana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
-influenced, each one was hand ground from A2 tool steel
Tool steel
Tool steel refers to a variety of carbon and alloy steels that are particularly well-suited to be made into tools. Their suitability comes from their distinctive hardness, resistance to abrasion, their ability to hold a cutting edge, and/or their resistance to deformation at elevated temperatures...
, and differentially edge hardened
Differential hardening
Differential hardening is a method used in forging swords and knives to increase the hardness of the edge without making the whole blade brittle. To achieve this, the edge is cooled more rapidly than the spine by adding a heat insulator to the spine before quenching. Clay or another material is...
to RC 60-61 on the Rockwell scale
Rockwell scale
The Rockwell scale is a hardness scale based on the indentation hardness of a material. The Rockwell test determines the hardness by measuring the depth of penetration of an indenter under a large load compared to the penetration made by a preload. There are different scales, denoted by a single...
with the remainder of the blade hardened to 58-59 on the scale to allow for flex during the cut. This strength protected the life of a Special Forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
advisor in El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
when a Hartsfield knife stopped a 7.62x51mm NATO rifle bullet fired by a guerrilla. Hartdfield's blades were zero-ground, meaning there is no secondary bevel edge on the knife which allows the knife to cut without parasitic drag
Parasitic drag
Parasitic drag is drag caused by moving a solid object through a fluid medium . Parasitic drag is made up of many components, the most prominent being form drag...
.
The majority of Hartsfield's blades are designed as tools with little to no ornamentation. However, Hartsfield makes museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
quality pieces, some of which are on display at the Canadian Army Museum at Halifax Citadel
Halifax Citadel
Halifax Citadel is a provincial electoral district in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, that elects one member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.Its current Member of the Legislative Assembly is Leonard Preyra of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party....
as examples of Samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
Swords.
Hartsfield built a unique hand-driven grinder, the "Lil Cranky," after his electric grinder had a mishap. While grinding a blade, a piece of metal embedded in the wheel and caused the wheel to explode. After a four-hour surgery and months in recovery, Hartsfield designed his machine and sold them from his shop to other knifemakers.
Hartsfield's knives are used by the US Navy Seals
United States Navy SEALs
The United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
and the USMC MARSOC teams.
Hartsfield died on May 20, 2010 at his home in Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, south of downtown Santa Ana. The population was 85,186 at the 2010 census.The city's median family income and property values consistently place high in national rankings...
after a lengthy battle with brain cancer.